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Tech giant Meta faced renewed legal scrutiny over allegations that its social media platforms misled the public about user safety and caused harm to young users. The company pushed back against these claims in a major social media addiction trial, describing the allegations as "unsubstantiated", according to a report by ABC News.
The legal battle stems from a lawsuit filed in October 2023 in the Northern District of California by a bipartisan coalition of 29 state attorneys general. Four states, namely, California, Colorado, New Jersey, and Kentucky are arguing the case in federal court in Oakland, California. The lawsuit alleges that Meta harnessed powerful technologies to entice and ensnare young users through features such as push notifications and infinite scrolling. As per ABC News, the company stated that potential damages in the case could reach up to USD 1.4 trillion, dismissing the financial demands of the state attorneys general. "The State AGs may call this a landmark case, but their limited claims are unsubstantiated and their financial demands are vastly disproportionate," a Meta spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News on Thursday. "The AGs offer no proof anyone in their states was misled, claim benign features like having an additional Instagram account somehow harmed their residents, and attempt to penalize Meta for industry-wide challenges like age verification," the spokesperson said. "Rather than sticking to the facts or the law, the states have instead decided to chase an outlandish payout," the spokesperson added. "We stand by our record of creating strong protections for teens, and look forward to making our case in court." The states also alleged that Meta violated federal online privacy laws by unlawfully collecting the personal data of its youngest users without parental permission. The lawsuit seeks mandatory changes to Meta's applications for users under 18 years of age, including the removal of infinite scrolling, video auto-play, and like counts. Jury selection began on Wednesday, with opening arguments scheduled to begin on Tuesday, August 18. The trial is expected to last seven weeks, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg alongside Instagram head Adam Mosseri could be called to testify. "One of my most important jobs as Attorney General is to protect our children from harm," ABC News quoted California Attorney General Rob Bonta saying on Monday. "Meta designed a dangerous product for young users, knew it to be dangerous, and then lied to children, families, and the community about how dangerous it was," Bonta added. "We are ready to hold Meta accountable for its role in fueling the mental health crisis of American children and look forward to trial." The proceedings follow a recent ruling where a New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay USD 567 million, an order Meta said it would appeal. (ANI)
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